DMV: Autonomous Vehicle Collisions Spike as Testing Increases

New data from the Department of Motor Vehicles shows a steady increase in the number of collisions involving autonomous vehicles in the state.

The increase reflects the rise in the number of companies that have received permits to test the technology in the state. There are now 61 companies so accredited, with the provision that a driver be in the vehicle during the test.  

Between October 2014 and Dec. 3 of this year, a total of 124 crashes, causing some injuries and damage ranging from minor to serious, have been reported to the DMV statewide. In 2015, nine collisions were reported; in 2016, that number rose to 15. Last year, there were 29 collisions; and as of Nov. 29 of this year, 70 such accidents had been reported.

Individual reports for each collision are posted publicly on the DMV site, and they include all the data that a regular accident would include: any injuries, a narrative of how the accident occurred, and the time, date and place of each crash.

The DMV also tracks and posts the data related to “disengagements,” the term used when a driver during a test has to intervene and take control of the vehicle because of a problem with the technology or a circumstance on a roadway.

Every time a disengagement occurs, the manufacturer of the test vehicle is required to file a report with the DMV and explain the reason for the disengagement. The DMV also posts those reports online, listed by vehicle manufacturer.